At the end of the world great bears sleep under drifts,
Cardinal crowned Cranes sing and dance in joyous union.
Long winters blossomed by colourful spring and autumn.
Sweet summers vibrate with labouring European bees
As rowdy Sika deer wander this hardy land of contrasts.
Dragons breath seeps from deep earth’s core to sculpt
And create a soulful oasis within turmoil and bedlam.
Here the Ainu live in concord with nature’s seasons.
Bowing to midwives of our world protecting life’s wonders
I salute your gifts you leave us though I will never see
Your wondrous habitat of Hokkaido’s land of extreme,
To witness the land where great bears sleep under drifts.
The surf pounds against cliff.
I beat my pillow moaning.
You are gone, your heart of stone
not swayed by my tears.
Onoko*-san, the bringer
who has seeded my garden,
return like the sea otter
through the waves to me.
*onoko is the Ainu word for man
The surf pounds against cliff
I beat my pillow moaning
you are gone, your heart of stone
not swayed by my tears
onoko*-san the bringer
who has seeded my garden
return like the sea otter
through the waves to me
The conch shell echoes your name
you are spirit born, deck lifted
I have burnt incense for you
do not haunt my shoals
* Three Dodoitsu's which tell the tale of LOVE meant to be sung.
onoko is the Ainu word for man comprised of 3 syllables
“o”, “no” and “ko” which refer to male and female sexual organs.
EXAMPLE for my contest
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